Heated scraper



June 20, 1944. v. E. ROBBINS 2,352,010

HEATED SCRAPER Filed March 31, 1942 INVENTOR. Verna/'74. fla/hj WM WATTORNEYS of the highways.

Patented June 20, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFlCE HEATED SCRAPER VernonE. Robbins, Oakland, Calif. Application March 31, 1942, Serial No.436,943

1 Claim.

The present invention relates to scrapers useful in the removal ofmaterials susceptible of being softened by the application of heat, suchas certain types of insulating materials and road tar.

for. Additionally, it is an object of the invention to provide a. deviceof the character described herein which is easy to operate in theremoval of the heated material and which will prevent injury to theoperator through physical contact with the said material while in suchheated condition.

In the automobile industry it is common practice to coat the inner orconcealed side of metal parts of the body and, in some instances, the

fenders with a sound-deadening material. Usually the insulating materialconsists of fibers impregnated with a thermoplastic compound, such asasphalt and the like. It is also quite common to find the under side ofth fenders coated with road tar picked up when the vehicle has traversedfreshly surfaced or repaired stretches Frequently small stones and gritparticles thrown up by the wheels of the car become embedded in this,the insulation material or road tar coatings. It repairing body dents,whether done by mechanical pressure roller means or manual hammering, itis essential that all such materials be first removed to provide directcontact with the metal. It is preferable that the material be softenedsufficiently to facililtate removal thereof in pieces from specificareas rather than to melt the same by indiscriminate application ofradiant heat. In restoring the sound-deadening coating following repairof the dents, the compound removed from the surface by the use of thedevice of this application is remelted and brushed over the repairedsurface.

These and other objects to become more apparent herein are attainable bythe use of the scraper disclosed and claimed in this application.

In th drawing:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through a scraper embodying in oneform the principles of the invention, taken along the line l--l ofFigure 3.

Figure 2 is an end elevation of the scraper in Figure l.

Figure 3 is a plan view of the device of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a plan view of a modification of the device, and

Figure 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the device of Figure 4.'

In the first preferred form of the device (Figure 1), the scraperconsists of a handle ill having a, longitudinal bore ll therein toreceive an end of a tubular member I2. Th outer end of the tubularmember I! is threaded internally to receive the correspondingly threadedportion of a blade carrier l3. A thin, flexible metal blade I5 is fittedin the slotted end 16 of the carrier l3 and retained therein byfrictional engagement to permit replacement as desired.

Heat is transmitted to the blade l5 through the carrier Hi from a coilI! wound upon a suitable core l8 disposed within and intermediate theends of the tubular member l2. Electrical enery is supplied the coil I!through the leads l9 which are in communication withlthe cords 20extending through the butt end of handle l0, through the medium of acontact plate 2| disposed at the inner end of the bore ll of handle I0.Preferably the tubular member I2 'is made of non-conductive materialsuch as certain wellknown plastic compositions, as it is desirable to rhold the heat within the tubular member for radiation only through thecarrier l3 and blade l5. lined with insulating material such asasbestos, as disclosed in the companion form of the invention.

Since it is desirable to maintain the temperature of the blade l5 belowthe melting point of the sound-deadening material (approximately 450F.), a thermostat 23 is provided within the tubular member. It may bysome be deemed desirable to combine the blade carrier i3 and thermostat23 into aunitary structure, and this could be done without departingfrom the spirit of the invention and still be within the scope of theappended claim, as it is merely a matter of choice. The thermostat 23,as will be understood, is in the circuit including the coil 11 havingconnected thereto the leads 19.

As will be noted from Figure 3, the leading edge of the blade I5 istapered or narrowed down If desired, the' tubular member may be tolocalize the heat application to an area of the material to be removedsuch as may be convenientlyhandled by each stroke of the scraper.Additionally, by so shaping the blade, the curvatures of certain areasof the car body or fender may be more closely followed to insure athorough cleaning job as well as to lighten the task of the operator.

- Since softened sound-deadening material raised to a temperatureapproching 450 F. would be likely to cause burns upon contact,protection for the hand of the operator is provided in the form of aconcave shield 25, secured by means of a set screw 26 on an annularportion 21 of the handlel0, adjacent the connection to the tubularmember If. The bowl of the shield extends over the forward end of thehandle, as shown in Figures 1 and 3.

To facilitate the application of both forward and downward pressure onthe blade IS, an auxiliary thumb rest 29 is secured to the handle Iwithin the protective area of the shield in any conventional manner,such as by the use of screws. As illustrated in Figure 1'the thumb resthas a bowl-shaped depression to the end thatthe device may be graspedfirmly and maximum pressure applied to the surface to be cleaned.

In the form illustrated in Figures 4 and 5, provision has been made forgreater insulation of the handle against the heat of the device and forcertain simplification of construction. In this form the shield 32 andhousing 36 are made integral but divided longitudinally into matchinghalves. At the juncture of the shield 32 and housing 36 a ferrule 33 isformed to receive the reduced portion of the handle 3|, at which pointthe assembly is secured by means of a nut and bolt 4|. As in thecompanion form of the invention an auxiliary thumb rest 34 is provided,but in this instance it rests in a groove 42 extending longitudinally ofthe handle 3| and has an end clamped between ferrule 33 and the reducedend of handle 3| by means of bolt 4|.

The heating element 35 encased by housing 36 is formed of a pair ofidentical halves adapted to be clamped upon the blade 30. The heatingelement 35 is retained in spaced relation within the housing 33 by meansof spacers 31 and bolts 38 passing through this assemblage serve to lockthe elements into a rigid unit.

As will be noted from Figure 5, the outer end of the housing 36 istapered down to bear snugly against blade to prevent foreign matterentering the said housing. The blade 30 is tapered at its leading edge(seeFigure 4) for the same reasons given in connection with blade ii ofthe companion form of the invention.

As a means of retaining the heat enerated by the element 35, the spacebetween the walls of the housing 36, the heating element and theconnected end of handle 3|, is filled with insulation material such asthe asbestos fiber 40 shown in Figure 5.

A thermostat is carried by the outer end of the heating element 33 inproximity to the working'end of the blade 30 to maintain the temperaturethereof below the melting point of the material to be removed, and itwill be appreciated that it is electrically connected to the heatingcoil within the housing 36 in a conventional way. In turn, lead lines 46connected to the thermostat 45 provide suitable connection to a plug-insource of current.

Assuming the blades l5 and 30, of the two devices, have been heated tothe required degree, the operator merely grasps the handle I0 or 3|,places his thumb on the rest 29 or 34, inserts the blade of the deviceinto the insulating material and exerts forward and downward pressure tomove the blade over the area to be cleaned. This movement causes thematerial to be softened by contact with the heated blade and to come offin the form of strips which may be conveniently handled pendingre-melting and replacement when the dented surface has been repaired.

It is believed apparent that the foregoing embodiments of my inventionwill be found useful as tools for the purpose primarily intended and tofill a long-felt need in the art.

Although I have specified herein that the device is particularly adaptedfor the removal of insulating materials, it will be appreciated that thescraper will also be found usefud in the removal of other materialssusceptible of being softened by application of heat accompanied by ascraping action, such as paints, varnishes, and other finishes.

While I have shown two preferred forms of the invention, it will bereadily appreciated that the invention may take additional forms and,hence, the forms shown and described are to be taken as illustrativeonly. Protection is desired according to the fullest scope of theappended claim.

The invention claimed is:

A scraper comprising a handle, a hand shield disposed at one end of saidhandle, a housing projecting from the shielded end of the handle, aheating element supported within said housing in spaced relation to itswalls, a thin flexible blade having one end secured in heat conductingrelationship to said heating element and its other end projecting fromsaid housing, and a thumb rest carried by the shielded portion of saidhandle on a plane parallel to one of the surfaces of the thin flexibleblade.

VERNON E. ROBBINS.

